With only two more weeks to go, teams are giving their best to finish as high as possible in the table. Tigres, Pachuca, Club América and Chivas have already clinched a playoff spot and four other tickets
are up for grabs.
How are the playoffs shaping so far and who are the biggest favorites?
Tigres bests Club América
After América’s controversial win against Monterrey, it was time for them to face another Regio team in the form of Tigres.
The second part of the season is showing a better and more put-together Tigres, with Diana Ordóñez being one of the most important signings for the Amazonians. Why? Well, not only did she score a brace in this match but she tallied the winning goal in stoppage time after Irene Guerrero equalized in the 71st minute. What is more, she has scored 13 goals this season.
After this win, everything seems to indicate Tigres will win the league because the two other clubs following them closely have a tougher remaining schedule. No doubt this was a big win for Pedro Martínez Losa’s team and they celebrated accordingly after the match.
However, this is Liga MX Femenil and any club can provide a surprise on any given day.
León keeps holding on
‘La Fiera’ had a complicated game this week since they faced the reigning champions, Pachuca. Things started well enough for them, scoring two in less than five minutes in the first 15 minutes of the match through Yashira Barrientos and Rubí Soto.
Nonetheless, Tuzas said “not so fast” and found the equalizer in the 20th minute through, who else, but Charlyn Corral. Before halftime, Pachuca took control and turned the tables. León let the game slip and it was 4-2 with 45 more minutes to play.
Corral scored a brace and the final score was 5-2. Despite the loss, León keeps holding the 8th spot in the table to qualify for the playoffs.
Pumas is not ok
Pumas hosted Atlas last Saturday and no doubt they gave the fans 90 minutes of fun soccer. Atlas opened the scoring but then, in the last minutes of the first half, both teams scored two goals each to finish the first chapter of this match 3-2.
Things looked bright for the Universitarias in the 51st minute when they found the equalizer but the Rojinegras made a final push in stoppage time and scored the winning goal through Juliet Nalukenge.
This result sinks Pumas even further, which after a good start to the season, started to fall little by little despite having the second-leading goalscorer of the tournament in the form of Aerial Chavarin (16 goals).
After this match, Pumas is out of the playoff positions (10) and is two points shy of León, the last club with playoff hopes.
Rayadas wins, but they have a busy week
With only two weeks to go, Monterrey hasn’t clinched a playoff yet, but the win against Tijuana (4-1) this week certainly has provided them some breathing room.
Nonetheless, they will have two more matches to play this week when they compete for the Concacaf W Champions Cup and face the Washington Spirit on Wednesday. The game won’t be easy, not only because of the opponent but because Monterrey has become a team with no consistency. Besides, they’re dealing with injuries: Katty Martínez, Emily Gielnik, Karol Bernal and Pamela Tajonar didn’t travel with the team.
Rayadas need a win to stay alive in this tournament, while the Spirit can qualify for the Final Four with a draw. Whatever the end result might be on Wednesday, they won’t have much time to dwell on the result since they play again next Sunday against León.
El Tri Femenil gets ready for the international break
Mexico will play two friendlies against New Zealand in the October international break. On Monday, coach Pedro López announced the roster for the upcoming games.
Besides Orlando’s Jacqui Ovalle, Portland’s Reyna Reyes, and Washington’s Rebeca Bernal, the club contributing to this roster the most is Tigres. Defenders Greta Espinoza and Anika Rodríguez, midfielders Alexia Delgado and Aaliyah Farmer, and forwards Diana Ordóñez and María Sánchez are among the 23 players called for national team duty.
América renews Sarah Luebbert and Daniela Espinosa
As we learned some days ago, the Eagles were about to reach an agreement with winger Sarah Lubbert to renew her contract. The said agreement was made official last Friday when the player renewed through 2029.
The official announcement was made in the game against Tigres, the match in which the Missouri Express returned to the field after months of recovery from an injury. Her return to play was welcomed by fans with a great ovation after waiting for months for her comeback.
América also decided to renew Daniela Espinosa through 2027, an iconic player who was captain for several seasons and, therefore, knows what it means to be an Americanista.
The Table
Week 16 starts on Wednesday! Where’s your team?
